MASON - August 16, 2006 - Defending champion and top seed Roger Federer, No. 2 Rafael Nadal, No. 6 James Blake and No. 9 Andy Roddick play their second-round matches on Center Court Wednesday.
Federer takes on British No. 1 Andy Murray. Federer won their only previous match – in the final of Bangkok last October (see below). Federer beat Paradorn Srichaphan in the first round, while Murray defeated British countryman Tim Henman.
FEDERER v MURRAY – Federer Leads 1-0
The Swiss magician, 25, is coming off his seventh title of the year Sunday in Toronto (d. Gasquet). That also represented his 11th ATP Masters Series shield, tying him for second on the 16-year list with Pete Sampras. Federer is gunning for his 18th straight final, which would tie him with Ivan Lendl for the Open Era record.
Federer has a 55-match winning streak in North America since his last loss to Dominik Hrbaty in the first round right here on Aug. 3, 2004. That streak has brought the Swiss tennis genius nine titles, including this tournament last year (d. Roddick) and the U.S. Open in 2004-05. He has a career record of 8-4 here.
World No. 1 Federer has a 19-match winning streak. He is 85-2 on hard courts over 2005-06, going 50-1 last season and 35-1 thus far this year.
Murray, 19, is on a roll, winning 18 of his last 23 matches. He reached a career-best ranking of No. 21 this week. He made it to the semifinals of Toronto last week (l. to Gasquet) and the final of Washington two weeks ago (l. to Clement). This is just Murray’s second year on the ATP circuit, and he is playing here for the second time.
NADAL v LEE – Nadal Leads 1-0
Nadal of Spain faces South Korean qualifier Hyung-Taik Lee in a re-match of their second-round in Toronto last week, won by Nadal. The Spaniard beat Sam Querrey in the first round, while Lee defeated Arnaud Clement.
World No. 2 Nadal trails only Federer this year with five titles. Two of those came in ATP Masters Series events – at Monte Carlo in April and Rome in May (d. Federer both times). Nadal has handed Federer his only losses in 2006, holding a 4-1 edge over him.
Nadal hasn’t captured a crown since Roland Garros in May, but his record is a lofty 11-3 during that period, including a runner-up showing at Wimbledon (l. to Federer). Nadal lost in the third round last week at Toronto (to Berdych). He has a record of 19-3 in Masters Series events this year and has a career record here of 1-2.
Lee, 30, is the most successful player in Korean history. He is on pace for a career year, with a record of 15-9. His win Monday evened his career ATP record at 114-114. He made the quarterfinals at Delray Beach in February and ‘s-Hertogenbosch in June. Lee has a career mark of 3-3 here, and is trying to reach the third round for the first time.
BLAKE v FERRERO – Ferrero Leads 1-0
Blake battles Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, who won their only prior match here in the second round four years ago. Blake beat Fabrice Santoro in the first round, while Ferrero defeated Jonas Bjorkman, who had to retire at 6-6 in the first set with a back injury.
Blake, 26, won his third ATP title of the year last month in Indianapolis (d. Roddick). Those three crowns tie him for third place this year with Tommy Haas behind Federer with seven titles and Nadal with five. Blake has won 14 of his last 18 matches. He has a career record of 6-4 in Cincinnati, losing in the first round last year to Federer.
Ferrero, 26, is struggling to regain the form that brought him the No. 1 ranking and Roland Garros crown in 2003. He hasn’t won more than two rounds at a tournament since April in Barcelona, where he reached the quarterfinals (l. to Almagro). Ferrero has a career record of 9-6 here, making the semifinals in 2002 (l. to Moya).
RODDICK v VLIEGEN – Roddick Leads 1-0
Roddick plays Kristof Vliegen of Belgium, with Roddick having won their only prior ATP meeting. Roddick squeezed by Daniele Bracciali in three tie-break sets in the first round, while Vliegen defeated qualifier Marc Gicquel.
Roddick, 23, is coming back from a side injury that forced him to pull out of Los Angeles last month after winning his second-round match. The injury also left him unable to play in Washington and Toronto the last two weeks. He was on an upswing when he got hurt, reaching his first final of the year last month in Indianapolis (l. to Blake).
Roddick has a strong 19-5 career record here, winning the event in 2003 (d. Fish) and finishing second last year to Federer.
Vliegen, 24, reached a career-best INDESIT ATP Ranking of No. 34 in June and is now No. 39. His first-round win lifted his career record above .500 – to 50-49. He is on track for his best year yet, with a mark of 27-17. Vliegen made it to the second final of his career in May at Munich (l. to O. Rochus). He is making his debut here.
DOUBLES PREVIEW
Fourth seeds Paul Hanley of Australia and Kevin Ullyett of Zimbabwe play the Russian duo of Marat Safin and Mikhail Youzhny in the second round. Safin and Youzhny beat Cermak-Knowle in the first round, while their opponents had a bye.
Hanley and Ullyett have a record of 40-12 this year. They won titles at Rotterdam (d. Erlich-Ram), Dubai (d. Knowles-Nestor), Hamburg (d. Knowles and Nestor again) and London-Queen’s Club (d. Bjorkman-Mirnyi). In the last two weeks, they were runners-up to the Bryan brothers at Washington and Toronto.
Ullyett was a runner-up here last year with Wayne Black, and Hanley came in second in 2003 with Wayne Arthurs.
Safin and Youzhny have a record of 4-1 together, with all three of the victories they garnered before this week coming in Davis Cup play in 2004-05. Their lone loss occurred at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. This is the first time they have played together in 2006.
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